Microsoft Access Consulting
Call us at +1 (385) 386-3860
Fixed price agreed in writing before work starts. Projects typically from $1,200; small fixes often cost less.
Have this ready for the call
You leave with a written keep, repair, rebuild, or SQL Server recommendation. You keep that even if you do not continue.
Quick answer: a Microsoft Access consultant decides, in writing, whether to keep, repair, rebuild, or move your database to SQL Server—before anyone writes more VBA. Excel Access Expert reviews a copy of your live file, delivers a written path and a fixed quote (typically from $1,200), then optionally implements. Hire a consultant when the problem is not fully defined yet. Already know you need a scoped build? Hire MS Access programmers.
Four reasons people hire an Access consultant. Each one starts with a look at the real file, then a written next step.
Staff live in Excel, two people cannot edit at once, and the process has outgrown a workbook. We map how the office already works, then design tables, forms, and the logic that ties them together. See custom Access database development.
Unrecognized format, compact and repair looping, corruption on the network, or an Office update that broke a form overnight. We work on a copy so the original stays safe, recover what we can, and get the team back in. Team locked out right now? Call +1 (385) 386-3860. See Access database repair.
An Access 2003 or 2010 file, the 2 GB ceiling in sight, too many people locking the database, or a version Microsoft no longer ships. We tell you whether a version upgrade is enough, or whether the data should move to SQL Server while staff keep the same screens. See Access upgrade and modernization and Access to SQL Server migration.
The author left and nobody can explain the code. A macro fails silently. You need Access talking to Excel, Outlook, or QuickBooks. We map the system, document it, and quote the next piece of work. See Access VBA development and Access support.
Recognize your situation? Tell us about it on a free 15-minute call. You get a straight answer on the next step.
Most teams that bring in an MS Access consultant already have a file in production. It might have started as a small tool and grown for years. The person who built it may have left. An Office update may have broken a form on Monday morning. Or there is no database yet, only spreadsheets that two people cannot edit at once. The first job is to say which of those you actually have, then quote the work. A programmer writes the VBA; the consultant decides what is worth writing first so you do not pay to fix the wrong thing. If you already know you need a coder for a scoped build, use the programmers page linked in the quick answer above.
Organizations using our Access work
Manufacturing, services, retail, and healthcare-real databases in production, not demos.
This is the consulting judgment. After 15+ years inside other people's Access files (since 2011), the decision almost always comes down to five facts, not a preference for a platform.
How many people work in the file at the same time. A well-split Access database typically holds about 5 to 10 concurrent users. Past that, locks and slowdowns are normal, especially on Wi-Fi or VPN.
How close the file is to the 2 GB Access limit. Compact and repair is not a growth plan.
Whether the file corrupts when used over the network. That is often a split, locking, or antivirus problem, not a reason to throw the system away.
How much of the VBA is undocumented. When the author has left, we map it before we touch it.
Whether staff can keep the same forms and reports. If they can, a SQL Server backend is usually cheaper and safer than a full rebuild.
| Path | Best when | Staff keep Access screens? |
|---|---|---|
| Keep Access, tidy it up | Headcount and data still fit; screens are slow or messy | Yes |
| Repair the file | It will not open, corrupts, or broke after an Office update | Yes |
| SQL Server backend, Access front end | Too many users, or the file is near the 2 GB limit | Yes |
| Rebuild in Access | The structure is wrong, or there is no real database yet | New screens, same idea |
| Web application | People need a browser, a phone, or access off the network | No (rebuilt) |
Microsoft still ships Access with Microsoft 365 and as Access 2024. It is still the right tool for many small and mid-sized teams. It is not a website and it is not a phone app. If someone tells you to "just put it on the web" without looking at concurrent users, file size, and whether staff can keep the screens they already know, they are selling a rebuild, not a consultation. We say that in writing before you pay for either.
Not sure which path fits your file? That is exactly what the first call is for.
A short call, a look at a copy of the file, a written recommendation, then optional delivery.
Tell us what the database does, who uses it, and what hurts. We ask a few questions and tell you straight if Access is still the right tool.
We sign an NDA first if you want one. Your live database stays untouched: we open a copy, map tables, forms, and VBA, and rank what is actually broken versus what only looks broken.
You get the recommendation, the scope, the timeline, and the price in writing, on a date we agree on the first call. Keep Access, repair, upgrade, or SQL Server: one path, one quote. No open-ended hourly bill.
If you want the same team to do the work, that is a separate written quote. You get the finished database unlocked, plus a plain-English map. Use us again or anyone else. The findings are yours either way.
Claims without numbers do not help you decide. These are documented projects on this site:
What clients say about our Access consulting work
Our team was manually exporting and re-entering data between Access and Outlook every single day. Their VBA programmer automated the entire workflow in about two weeks. We got back roughly 8 hours a week almost immediately.
We had them do a complete rewrite of an Excel spreadsheet that locked up computers, when it was executed. Rajan did a good job of rewriting the spreadsheet and speeding it up. it takes three seconds to refresh compared to 20 minutes it was taking earlier. We'll definitely use Rajan and his team in the future.
We work with operations, finance, and business owners in the US, UK, and Canada whose week depends on an Access database: inventory, billing, job tracking, HR, clinic admin, or a similar process that grew inside a file.
Need a new Access database because spreadsheets are colliding.
Cannot open the file, or it corrupts when more than one person uses it.
Are stuck on an old Access version, near 2 GB, or past the user limit.
Inherited a system nobody can explain and want a written map before anyone recodes it.
Want a fixed price and a written scope instead of an open hourly bill.
Already have a written spec and only need scoped implementation. Hire Access programmers for that job.
Want a full custom SaaS product or a generic website rebuild with no Access file in the picture.
Want the database moved to the web before anyone has looked at users, data size, or whether staff can keep the current screens.
Want an Access tutorial rather than work on a live business database.
You have three routes. Here is how they compare when the database actually runs the business.
| Route | How you pay | What you get | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance marketplace | Hourly, rate set by each person | You vet them, you write the scope, and one person holds all the knowledge | Small, already-defined jobs |
| Full-time employee | Salary and benefits, whether or not there is Access work | Daily coverage, until they leave and take the undocumented logic with them | Ongoing in-house Access work |
| Access consultant (Excel Access Expert) | Fixed price per job, quoted in writing after we see the file | A recommended path, a scope, and optional delivery. Findings stay yours | New build, repair, upgrade, or a file nobody can explain |
If the job is already a defined coding task, hire Access programmers for scoped implementation. If you are not sure yet, start with the consultant call.
Short answer: we do not bill by the hour. We quote a fixed price for a defined piece of work, typically from $1,200, after a free first look and a written estimate. Small fixes often cost less; larger systems cost more.
People searching for Access consultant rates usually want one hourly number. That number does not tell you what the job costs. Two people at the same rate can take very different amounts of time on the same undocumented database, and under an hourly deal you carry that difference. A fixed price moves that risk to us.
| Type of work | Typically from | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| Small fix or database health check | Typically at or below $1,200 | A few days |
| Repair a recoverable Access file | Quoted after we open a copy of the file | Often 1 to 5 days |
| New custom Access database | Typically from $1,200 | Quoted after the review |
| SQL Server upgrade (keep Access screens) | Typically from $1,200; larger systems more | Quoted after the review |
The size of the database: how many tables, forms, and reports it holds, and how much custom code sits behind them.
Whether the file is already split for shared use, and how many people work in it at once.
How much of the logic is undocumented. That is normal when the person who built it has left.
Whether you need a repair, a version upgrade, a new system, or a SQL Server backend.
You see the figure before any billable work starts. The first look and the written estimate cost nothing. If the honest answer is that you do not need a consultant, we say so.
Want your own number? Book the free call and we will quote your file, not a band.
You get a written path and a price you know up front.
Scope, timeline, and a fixed quote. You know the number before we change the file.
Not a demo. Not a generic checklist. The file your staff use every day.
The written map is yours even if you stop after the review. Finished work is delivered unlocked.
We sign your NDA before you send anything and never touch the live file. Remote across the US, UK, and Canada.
Put a dollar number on the manual work with the Free Cost Audit. Browse the MS Access services hub. Compare tools in Excel vs Access. For day-to-day reporting, see connect MS Access with Excel. Tired of waiting on a new report for every question? Ask your Access database questions in plain English with DatabaseAI. Guides: how to create forms in MS Access and audit logging in Excel and Access.
FAQ
Find answers to common questions about our services
Book a free 15-minute consultation. Bring one concrete problem: a new system, a file that will not open, an old version to upgrade, or a database nobody can explain. We will tell you the next step and the price.
Prefer to talk? Call us at +1 385 386 3860
